Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless technology and, more particularly, to selection and pairing of devices configured to wirelessly communicate.
Bluetooth (Bluetooth Specification Version 5.0 [Vol 0], 6 Dec. 2016) is a wireless technology standard for exchanging data between electronic devices over short distances. Before a device communicates with another device via Bluetooth, the devices must establish a connection. This requires several steps. First, one device discovers connectable devices. Connectable devices are typically then shown to the user as a list of device names. Second, the user must choose the correct device to connect to based on its device name in the list. Third, the two devices exchange information in order to establish a bond in a process known as pairing. Fourth, a connection is established.
This multi-step process can be a cumbersome, time-intensive, non-intuitive process for a user. As an example, the device names shown to the user during discovery may not sufficiently identify the device the user wishes to connect to or the function of that device. Also, there may be numerous devices in the discovery list including devices not within proximity for practical use, complicating the selection of the desired device. As the number and types of wireless devices increases and in-view of the projected advancements of wireless communications, including the Internet of Things (IoT), there is a need to improve: the discovery and selection processes whereby the user finds and selects the device they wish to interact with, and the process for reconnecting to previously-bonded devices. More generally, there is a need to improve the process for one device selecting and connecting to another device, independently of whether paring is required. While aspects are described with reference to Bluetooth technology, the need for improving the connection process is equally applicable to other wireless protocols.